Travels low cost

The craftsmanship of Murano and Burano

2012-01-25T02:13:00.000-08:00

Upon request, the hotel staff organizes a short excursion to Murano, which is famous all over the world the world for its glasswork. They offer transportation and they accompany you to the glass factory where a man welcomes visitors to explain how to blow glass and how to become a glass master. Of course, when the presentation is over, you have to go to his immense glass store with its sky-high prices. I suggest buying elsewhere: the prices drop by half. Anyway, the visit is very interesting. Afterwards, we walk through Murano; it’s a beautiful day today and we are able to enjoy the island in all its splendor. We buy jewels and Murano glass souvenirs. After a couple of hours we reach the lighthouse to take the ferry, (again 6.50 euro) which leads us to Burano.

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Burano, with its multi-colored houses, its canals and its laces hanging everywhere, turns out to be nice and cozy. Burano is really charming, especially at this time, when there are very few tourists. The colors of the houses really brighten up the landscape, which is already lofty on its own. It almost looks like we are in a fairy tale. In fact, as soon as you land there, you have the impression that you’ve just ended up in the Smurfs’ village or in Alice’s wonderland. Every house looks like a canvas. We must note that the City Hall forbids owners to change the color of their houses’ walls, because the island's economy relies heavily on tourism.
It starts to get late and we take yet another ferry, which takes us back to the island of Venice. The boat leaves us at New Foundation and from there we explore another very nice area of the city, full of shops and channels. On our path, we meet several small motor boats, with parents taking their children home from school; something very different from what we're used to! We stop at the supermarket to buy some groceries: tonight we will have dinner at home because we don’t really feel like going out!

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Venice, the jewel of Italy

2012-01-24T02:12:00.000-08:00

It is amazing how, in Venice, everything, absolutely everything, takes place on the sea. Ambulances with sirens blaring run along the Grand Canal, as well as the police and the fire fighters. The vendors sell their wares, often fruit and vegetables, in boats, taking the advantage of being able to cover more areas of the city during the day. Entrepreneurs do their business using boats as means of transport: I had never seen a move taking place on the sea. Everything is very strange for people like me, who aren’t used to the total lack of cars and motorbikes. Even bicycles are absent in Venice.

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THE JOURNEY (stories and tips)
We are not even 3 hours away from Venice, where we arrive in the early afternoon. I booked the cheaper parking in the area (garage Europe - 50 euros for 4 days) in Mestre, because the municipal car parking in Piazzale Roma in Venice (last stop possible) is very expensive. With the bus line 4L (but even 4 is fine) we arrive at Piazzale Roma, where we take a boat to San Marco. The tobacco shop where we can buy the tickets is closed, so we just ask the driver about the ticket and he says: “If you want, you can get it when you get out”. If you want!!? Ok, when I arrive I ask him about the price of the ticket and he says: “Goodbye lady, I wish you a good day”. Well, certainly I don’t insist ...
Water taxis are the typical means of urban transport in Venice, used by almost everyone. For the residents, the cost is negligible, but for all the others it’s quite expensive: 6.50 euros each way. But there’s the Tourist Ferry that allows you to cross the Grand Canal with just 2 euros. Since our hotel stands half way between Rialto and San Marco, it is serviced by both (Rialto stop and San Marco stop) but for your convenience, I suggest you get off at the first stop, as there’re less bridges to cross. With the bags it’s a little uncomfortable. We obviously go down to San Marco (Vallaresso)!
At a first glance it's a mess; all these narrow and dark streets are confusing, and you can’t even ask for information because everything is a “turn right, turn left, cross the bridge”… and you forget immediately what they have told you. Anyway, we easily reach the Hotel San Luca, where I booked a cottage for 4 days for a total cost of 200 euros. I get things straight: it was a super deal, a 75% discount on the full price because of the low season. Upon our arrival, we have a surprise: the annex is nothing more than a nice apartment detached from the hotel, with 2 large double bedrooms, a bathroom, a lounge and a kitchen. Great! The thought of not having to sleep with my mother and having to deal with her snoring fills me with joy!
We stop only for the necessary time to fix our suitcases, and we’re already at the Rialto Bridge, the oldest, and certainly the most famous, of the four bridges of Venice. Given the close association with the local market nearby, the bridge, once called the Bridge of coins, changed its name and became the Rialto Bridge. Initially built with wood, it was destroyed and collapsed several times over the centuries, until it was rebuilt and made with stone. Today, there are souvenir shops on both of its sides.
We follow the advice of the hotelier and go to one of those restaurants he recommended (actually, I think they must get a percentage on the customers they send there). The Da Gioia restaurant isn’t so bad though, and the price is reasonable: we spend 45 euros as a total for the two of us.
We go for a short walk to digest, to visit the Rialto Bridge in the evening and to take some pictures, and then we go back home because it has gotten really cold. I fall asleep in my bed all alone.

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Venice is beautiful but ..... I would never live there. Yes, it may sound like the usual hearsay, but it’s the simple truth: Venice is beautiful but I would never live there, if anything, for that damned moisture that penetrates you and stick to your bones non-stop. And if like me, you already have some pains, it’s the end cause it’s a constant torture. Everything else is a delight.

We start our day where we had left it the night before: Rialto. Beyond the bridge, you can find the commercial area of Venice, with its daily market of fruits, vegetables and fish. The area is full of shops and souvenir stalls, where, if you look carefully, you can also find some pieces of original Murano glass. We visit all the area coming up to the S. Polo sestriere (that’s how they call neighborhoods here). Here we find stalls selling pork sandwiches, cheeses, hams etc. ... so we decide to stop for lunch and eat on the benches, also because of the beautiful sunny day. Each sandwich costing 5 euros, we take two of them with pork and grilled vegetables, and they are delicious. When we are done with our lunch, we move towards what will be our final destination: the Peggy Guggenheim, the Museum of Contemporary Art, second only to the Guggenheim in New York. But first we cross the Dorsoduro district with all its fields (squares) and its many churches.
When we arrive at the Peggy, we discover that its closing day is Tuesday…what a bitter surprise! I decide that I will not get back here, if it wasn’t for what I see through the shop window: the scratch map travel! That’s a map of the world covered with a gold film that you can scratch away depending on the countries or areas that are visited in the world (like a scratch and win ticket). I have been looking for it for a long time and I can’t miss this opportunity!
Since the museum is closed, we decide to go to the tip of the island, passing through the Salute Church and arriving up at the customs. From here you can enjoy a wide view of the entire basin of San Marco, and you can see the islands of San Giorgio and Giudecca nearby. By now, the sun is going down and we enjoy this sunset with a nice walk through the rafts, the road that runs along the south side of the island. Here there’s the University of Fine Arts of Venice, the rowing club and again many churches.
Now it's time for dinner. Tonight we want to choose the restaurant without any interference and then wander through the streets of San Marco, peering menus (and prices) exposed on the outside. We find cheap and attractive ones but in the end my mother is terribly attracted to Peppino’s restaurant, just behind San Marco. I try to convince her that that’s a restaurant for tourists and that probably the menu that starts from € 12.90, including two dishes plus coffee is a rip off, meaning that you eat like crap. I’ve never been so wrong. I order the spaghetti with squid ink and mixed fried fish. Everything is delicious.
After a short ride in San Marco just to take some pictures, we go home immediately because it’s freezing.

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Montmartre is the real Paris

2011-12-10T08:08:00.000-08:00

The Moulin Rouge, the Pigalle, and the Church of the Sacred Heart are the main attractions of the district of Montmartre, where we spend most of the day. Truly, it is the most beautiful and representative part of Paris, the one I liked the most. The Sacre Coeur is situated on a hill, from which you can see almost the entire city and during the Christmas season it is surrounded by the little wooden houses of the Christmas markets. It is forbidden to take pictures or shoot videos inside the church, but there's only a disconsolate guardian to enforce that rule, and she has to run after everybody, so while she goes to reprimand someone else .... hihihihi

We walk around the neighborhood following a precise route, we discover the place where Modigliani and Picasso used to get drunk and party with some chicks, the "Lapin Agile", a sort of local cabaret. We also discover the old residence of Renoir.

The Church of the Sacred Heart.
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved

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There’s still some time before it gets dark and following the advice of my friend Romina, we want to go to see the Defense, the business district of Paris whose builders were inspired by the giants of Mahnattan. Actually, we don’t find it very interesting, so just the time to take a couple of pictures and to have a quick ride to yet some other Christmas Markets, and we are back on the Champs Elysees to go up on Arc de Triomphe, as we decided the night before.

The arch’s entrance is located underground, obviously following the pedestrian tunnel that leads to the center of the square. We spend a short time in line and then with 10 euros we go up (by feet) and reach the top of the arc. On the inside, there are a shop, an info point and restrooms. The view from up there’s spectacular: on one side, you can see up to the big Ferris wheel, and on the other side, your sight can extend along the 5-km-avenue that leads to the Defense.

After the scam of a dinner the previous night, we decide to go back to our Moroccan friends who had treated us so well. This time, I taste some kebabs served with mixed vegetables, Sebastiano orders the couscous chicken, which is very delicious. We ask several times for the mint tea of the desert, that they use to serve with a lot of sugar, and that we love so much. Even the bill doesn’t disappoint us at all, as we spend about 26 euros in total (for the two of us). I would like to point out that this restaurant, being Muslim, doesn’t mention wine on the menu, but if you want drink it, you can go to the mini-market next door and buy a bottle that you can bring with you and keep on the table without problem: and the guys even brought us the only two wine glasses that they held in their local! They are definitely one step ahead!

December 11, 2011
Beautiful things come to an end immediately. So we get to the last day of our stay. Our flight is in the late afternoon, so we can use the whole morning to visit the cemetery of Père-Lachaise, where Jim Morrison, Chopin, and Oscar Wilde are buried, along with a considerable number of other famous people. They say that in order to "revive" the image of this cemetery that wasn’t being considered by anyone, they began to bury famous people there.
Pay attention when you exit the metro Père-Lachaise, cause you’ll immediately find a kiosk that sells the maps of the cemetery: it’s not illegal, but be aware that at the entrance of the cemetery, the management provides free maps in different languages! Learn to understand the difference between the number of the tomb’s position and that of "area" in which that is located. I was looking for Oscar Wilde and I stumbled upon the grave of Jim Morrison!
Speaking about Jim, if you're expecting to find a huge space dedicated to him, with many flowers, many people, and much of everything... you'll be amazed. His tomb is located in a quite hidden position (let’s say, in the second row), it’s not very big and it doesn’t stand apart from the ones close to it. So, when he died, he was considered a person like many others. And it sounds right.

The grave of Jim Morrison.
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved

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Oscar Wilde’s grave, instead, is protected by a large plexiglass box, because some time ago an idiot broke the statue’s intimate parts on the tombstone ... No comment!
After visiting the cemetery, we move quickly to the center to find the Sorbonne. After a quick lunch with a sandwich, we get back to the hotel to collect our luggage.
To get to Charles de Gaulle airport, we take the underground to Gare du Nord, then the RER (French commuter trains) B line that leads straight to our destination. I don’t know if we have done something wrong, but with only 1 euro (an underground ticket) we’re able to arrive at the airport without any problems. Oh well, c'est la vie!

Christmas Markets in Paris

2011-12-09T01:39:00.000-08:00

Due to the bad weather we decide to take refuge in the most famous big store of France: Galeries La Fayette. We don’t like it at all, so we leave it immediately. We walk through the whole shopping area till we reach Place de la Concorde. We want to visit the famous Christmas markets on the Champs Elysees. To be honest, we find them very expensive and the people in those cute little wooden houses that come one after the other up to the Arc du Triomphe, sell more or less the same things. We only buy the mint of the desert tea, the one that we tasted the night before at the Moroccan restaurant near our hotel.
When we arrive to at the arc du triumphe, we discover that it is possible to get on its top to admire the view, but we think that it would be better to do that in the evening, to enjoy the Christmas lights on the avenue. So we decide to come back later when it’s dark.

Arc du Triomphe
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

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We spend the afternoon visiting the Louvre; a full day wouldn’t be enough to appreciate it all. Once again, I find myself in front of the Mona Lisa, the most admired stamp in the world! So it was nothing new to me to find it so small. I will not dwell on the Louvre museum for too long but I can tell you that, in order to avoid the line of people that crowds around the pyramid, you can directly enter the museum from the subway exit: you follow the signs, get the ticket at the automatic machines (10 euro) and you find yourself right in the vast hall of the museum, where you can find info points, wardrobe, bars, shops, bathrooms, etc...
When we leave the museum is already dark, we dwell taking pictures and then retrace the Champs Elysees in the opposite side this morning to look at the stalls that we were missing. This brings us again to the bow but it's already past 8 pm, we’re destroyed and hungry and we didn’t want to do anything, not even to climb the Arc du Triomphe. So we decide to go back to the hotel and go out to eat at a French restaurant just nearby. The kitchen doesn’t satisfy us fully, tomorrow we’ll return at the Moroccan restaurant.

Champs Elisée
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

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"Immaculate" Paris!

2011-12-08T01:44:00.000-08:00

After over 14 years, I’m back in Paris. Even in this occasion, I’m with someone special but different.

Paris never disappoints expectations; it’s always beautiful in every season of the year. I visited it in the summer; now winter is almost here, the Christmas atmosphere makes everything more surreal, the lights, though not abundant (I guess that also French people have to deal with the crisis), are always special, carefully designed.
Paris is expensive throughout the year, especially in December, so you need to be mentally prepared to spend a lot of money; otherwise, you can do just like me: search, search, and search until you find the best deal.
I had been dreaming about going back there for a while, and opportunity makes the thief (275 euro for a Milan–Paris Charles de Gaulle flight departing on Wednesday at 21.10 and coming back on Sunday at 18.05, for 2 people).
Here’s the summary of the 4 intense days of the Immaculate Conception’s long weekend.

Our flight lands at the main Paris airport in the evening, but I don’t understand why the public means of transport that I had previously studied to arrive at the hotel are not working tonight. They provide the passengers with shuttle buses that take them to an Underground stop; from there, we somehow end up on the RER train that takes us to the Gare du Nord. From here it's much easier to find our direction and take the right line to our destination. It’s here, in this station, that for the first and unique time in the whole trip I feel in danger: a black kid on the escalator stares at me and slows down, as if he’s going to wait for me at the top, but he realizes that I have caught him and he resumes his pace to reach his friends ahead. For the rest, we can say that as it happens in all the capitals, the more you move into the suburbs, the more the environment becomes less peaceful.
Our hotel, Timohtel, is located in the district of Charonne. I paid 250 euros for a double room for 4 nights, a fair price if we consider the period of the year, the city, and the proximity to the underground stop (line 2 Avron). Clean and simple, the reception is open 24 hours a day. The trip to downtown takes about 20 minutes.

December 8, 2011
The tour begins with a visit to Notre Dame. Maybe it’s because of the dreary weather, but the monument doesn’t look so amazing and it doesn’t impress us that much. We find out that even here in Paris there’s a facsimile of the Milvian Bridge in Rome with the locks of love ... the world is the same everywhere! The sun peeps out from behind the clouds and we continue our guided tour through the two islands of the city, which are typically Parisian and therefore very beautiful.
We stop to have lunch and then we decide to go to the Louvre but, I don’t know how, we get the wrong train and the wrong line and we magically find ourselves at the stop of ... the Eiffel Tower! Well, let's take advantage of this chance! Before heading to the tower, we take a ride in the area, we visit the Christmas markets of the Trocadero, we take plenty of pictures and then, as the sun sets down, we get in line to climb the tower. We don’t even have to stay in line for too long (about 30 minutes), we pay 13.50 euros to climb the tower through two elevators (9 euros if you take the stairs) and ..... spectacular! The view of the city is really breathtaking, every corner is visible from up here.
On the top of the tower, the wind blows so wildly that, it's hard to take pictures even with the tripod; plus, the people keep pushing me to find the right location for their pictures, and they always end up where I am!
When we go back down, it's already past 8 pm, and we want to wait the stroke of the hour to fully enjoy the Christmas lighting of the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately, the photos don’t do justice to the beauty of the place.

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Just like being in Africa

2011-11-27T07:28:00.000-08:00

A day at the Safari Park and everything comes back to my mind. I think about Africa, about the animals, about the safaris that went bad and those that were well managed, and I think, "Hell, if I had had a good camera reflex at that time, I would have taken a lot of wonderful photos."

Well, it takes very little, the solution is called Safari Park. Attention: we are not talking about a zoo: the animals are completely free to move, it’s the people who have to be very careful and follow the rules. It is absolutely forbidden to get out of the car or lower the windows.

So in this environment, I find the entire Africa, only the elephants were missing!

I let you judge the beauty of this place.

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2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.
For those who don't recognize it, this is the booty of a white rhino.

The Safari Park is located in Pombia (NO), about 1 hour away from Varese, and the cost of the ticket is 17 Euros; on the site www.safaripark.it there’s a downloadable discount that can reduce the price to 14 Euros.

Soon I will publish other formidable pictures, for the moment enjoy your visit.

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Torremolinos: mass tourism

2011-08-20T05:26:00.000-07:00

Discouraged by the weather situation, we're happy to take the first bus to Torremolinos. Tarifa’s station terminal is rather basic: the reception is closed, chairs are non-existent, and the terminal’s cleanness surely is not what you would go for. We get our ticket (about 10 euro) on the bus, we get in line and... goodnight everyone!

Torremolinos is just as I expected it to be: touristic, very touristic. It’s nice for a one-day stay, but nothing more. We chose it as the last stop of our Andalusia’s tour because the following day we would have departed from Malaga airport (approx. 10 km away) at 9 am and therefore, it was convenient. In fact, you can safely take the train (1 € approx.) that takes you directly to the airport.

As I said, since the town is very touristic, it doesn't stands out for its architectural beauty; on the opposite, you can see stretches of beachfront hotel tower blocks that litter a landscape, which is already not great.

Once we take possession of our room, we go to eat at the restaurant on the opposite side of the road: we don't even have all the money to pay the bill, as we’re missing about 70 cents, but with a little blink of eyelashes and an apology, we make it out of there :D

We spend the rest of the day at the beach, which is very crowded, with a slight sea. It’s almost impossible to swim, each wave pulls my bathing suit down... it’s better for me stop showing off!

In the evening, we take a beautiful paseo in the center, which is filled with shops, then we go for a walk along the beach, we do some last minute shopping, and then we head to bed. Our vacation's over.

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Total cost per person:

Easyjet flight round trip 240 € Milan Malpensa-Malaga

hotel approx. € 300 for 11 nights

buses and other public transport approx. 60 euro

trip to Tangier: 55 €

Lunches and dinners: average 25 euro per day

One day in Morocco (Tangier)

2011-08-18T07:59:00.000-07:00

We bought the 55 euro tickets for the one-day tour to Tangier from an agency, but to tell the truth, we could have also used the do-it-yourself formula. In fact, we could have bought a ferry round trip ticket for € 32 and then visit the city center on our own: of course, we would have probably ended up lost in the narrow and crowded streets of Tangier, and also we would have certainly had some security issues, but at least we would have been spared all the demonstrations of carpets, essential oils, natural pharmacy etc. .... In the end, I wouldn’t know what to go for, well, probably security.

However, before visiting the city, we were put on a bus and taken to the suburbs to see a cave that has an opening shaped like Africa, and that carries its own traditional story, which, to tell you the truth, I didn’t even feel like hearing.

2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserverd. Moroccan coast near Tangier

Me in Morocco

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The second stop of our Moroccan tour was right in town. We reached the center all together, where we briefly assist to a public speech made by a local leader, surrounded by his group of supporters. In order to help us to not get lost, another Moroccan guy, beside our official tourist guide, closed the group and made sure that nobody got missing: of course, at the end of the day he would ask for a (lavish) tip for his valuable help. Then we passed through a myriad of narrow streets, to end up at the restaurant booked by the agency: a typical Moroccan place with a lot of traditional musicians. There’s a waiter so weird that he looked like someone who’s full of heroin… Our cous-cous based lunch, which I would say was very good, was consumed fairly quickly. Then it was the turn of the exhibitions… and that sucked! First, we stopped at the carpet exhibition with its attached shop, then we moved to the exhibition of pseudo-natural products for the body, face, hands, for the treatment of headache, toothache and just for the treatment of everything. Our third and final stop (thank God, or I would have made a mess!) was at a magnificent room with a panoramic terrace looking over the port of Tangier and that was it!

Agitators and supporters

When the boarding time arrived, we had a moment of semi-panic mixed with hilarity: on the ticket issued by the Moroccan transport, Sebastian’s last name was misspelled… but no worries, nobody noticed the difference apart from us!

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Tarifa what a price!

2011-08-18T02:51:00.000-07:00

Tarifa is the southernmost country of the entire European continent and, for some reason that I can’t explain, this filled us with great expectations. Being only 14 km far from Morocco, Tarifa is considered as the meeting point of two continents and two cultures, the European and the African one. This small town is very nice, with its low white houses, narrow cobbled streets, pubs, restaurants, and clubs to no end. A paradise for surfers and for the lovers of the most fun parties of Andalusia. However, if you don't belong to any of these categories, you're screwed.

We stayed in Tarifa for 3 days, 2 of which were literally spent in the wind and, therefore, we were unable to go to the beaches. We tried, but believe me, it was a disaster! So if you aren’t into extreme sports and you don't like to stay out until 5 in the morning, there isn’t much to do here. Not to mention the fact that Tarifa it is a very expensive small town! The standards are even higher than our Italian ones. We spent 83 euro per room per day for a 2 star hotel; yes, it was nice and clean, but still a 2 star! Eating is certainly not cheap as well: so consider a budget of at least 100 euro per day per person if you come to Tarifa in August! And have fun.

Tarifa, the European homeland of surfers

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The rooftops of Tarifa

Among the narrow streets of Tarifa

Too much wind!!

Too much wind, but the beaches are deserted!

How bad is Gibraltar?!?!

2011-08-16T06:16:00.000-07:00

In the early morning we took yet another bus to go back to Malaga, then from there, our journey would have been Malaga-La Linea de la Conception-Gibraltar. When we arrived at the Line, we headed straight towards the big hotel I had booked on the internet seizing a super deal: 30 € per room for a 4 star hotel with swimming pool (not used), wellness center (not used) etc. .. We deposited our bags and immediately went out to find a restaurant to have lunch: man, what a sad place! Although it was 4 pm, everything was closed, even the restaurants seemed to be ready to kick people out: it’s siesta time. We stopped at a little place downtown, where we had a decent meal, and then we moved towards the border with Gibraltar. We walked through customs, where the policeman asked us for the documents, and then we found ourselves on the famous runway aircraft that divides the border between Spain and Gibraltar. What a cool feeling! We could immediately see the Rock of Gibraltar that I would have liked to visit, but since we were staying there only for a short time, we simply observed it from below.

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The track that divides Spain and Gibraltar

The Rock of Gibraltar

As soon as we passed through customs, we saw the first signs of England: the red telephone boxes, and Sebastian didn’t miss the chance...
We reached (after a couple of miles) the city center. It’s nice, if you want, and it’s typically English, but other than that, there is really nothing. We had a quick walk through the streets of the city, we stopped at an internet point and then we went back. We’re tired, it’s evening, and we chose a little place to dine in La Linea, which I would say was very good if it hadn’t been for the surrounding area ... which I would define as disturbing. We’re in the middle of summer, but it was foggy and the atmosphere was the one of a horror movie ... Better eat and go straight to bed and forget this terrible village!

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Nerja, The balcony of Europe and the crystal clear water

2011-08-15T05:49:00.000-07:00

When we left Granada, we would have never imagined to arrive in a small town so nice that we regretted that we had spent there only a little over two days...

Nestled on the coast, Nerja has a very enviable sea. Turquoise blue waters invite you to enjoy long and relaxing days on the beach. And we did. In these days we spent in Nerja, we did nothing but eat, sleep and rest… exactly what we were looking for. Also, the accommodation wasn’t so bad; even if it was far from the center, it was very clean and comfortable. The price was about 40 euro per person but you have to keep in mind that it was August!

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The Alhambra in Granada

2011-08-12T06:03:00.000-07:00

Since the bus to Granada didn’t leave from the bus terminal in front of the train station before mid-morning, we had all the time to stop and have breakfast with some fantastic churros (fritters for dipping in hot chocolate). In less than two hours we arrived in Granada, we left the station, took a bus to the city center and we were lucky enough to get down right in front of our "hotel". The quotation marks are a must, considering the accommodation we had been given: a small room, minimum standard cleaning, a super noisy fan, and the view.... oh well, should I go on? However, the most spectacular thing was the distorting mirror, at least we laughed a little.
We walked up and down the main street of the city, following signs for the Lonely to nibble some great tapas in a place crowded also with locals, where everyone screams and you must scream too and elbow if you want to be served.... well, let’s go with that! Sebastian was not very happy with his lunch though...

The distorting mirror

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Granada is the capital of Andalusia and, a part of from the Alhambra, there’s nothing else spectacular to visit. Sure it is nice, but it’s not worth more than 1-2 days of stay.
The Alahmbra is a whole different thing, this place alone is worth the trip.
Etymologically, Alhambra is "al-Hamra '" (the Red الحمراء) in Arabic; in fact, its full name was “Qal at al-Hamra” (Red Fortress).
According to some versions, the name derived from the pinkish color of the walls surrounding the Alhambra. It’s a real walled city that occupies most of the Sabika hill. The Alhambra style represents the supreme apex of the Andalusia’s art.
The World Heritage Committee of UNESCO has nominated the Alhambra and Granada’s Generalife Cultural Heritage of Humanity. I will not indulge in telling the whole Alhambra’s story because it can be read in any guide or source from the Internet.
I had to book the tickets 3 months (the maximum) in advance to be able to visit them, and I did that directly from the site www.alhambratickets.com, where I had to choose at what time we would have been at Palacios Nazarios. We got there at a decent time, around 9 am, and there’s already a long queue to get tickets. I had to witness to this scene where an Italian woman, in her bad Spanish-English, was expressing her displeasure, saying that it was inconceivable that she had arrived at 8am and all the tickets were already gone! The guy tried to explain to her that we’re in the middle of August and there’re people who had been in line from 4am (I would have been happy to intervene to shut her up) .... what the fuck was she expecting?!?!? Anyway, in the end I didn’t really care and I happily went to collect my ticket directly from the ATM: you simply insert the credit card which you bought the tickets with and voilà, you have the ticket in your hand in 5 minutes. We entered at 9.30am and we went out at 2.30pm; we were tired and hot, but satisfied. It was just a shame that the best thing to see in Palacios Nazarios, the fountain with lions, was in the process of restoration ... :(

Alhambra, the Palacios Nazarios
(work in progress at the fountain of lions).
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

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My love was born in Malaga

2011-08-10T02:48:00.000-07:00

I'm not crazy, but when I think of Malaga, I always think of this song. And it’s from this city, which many consider ugly, that our tour in Andalusia and Morocco started.

Let’s discredit the rumors: Malaga is pretty, I would say that it’s at least prettier than Granada. We arrived in the evening with a direct flight from Milan Malpensa. We took the bus to the city, then we walked for a few miles until we reached our hotel in the city center (Hotel Carlos V, about 30 euro per person per night). The room was clean and well equipped. A very cool program that should be aired in Italy as well is on television; it's called "1000 stupid ways to die". They show you true stories of death that are so absurd that they are almost ironic…even if the thought of death is not so funny…
We went out to find something to eat, it's almost 11 pm and we don’t want to be left empty-handed. Seba, overwhelmed by his hunger, ended up into one of the many tourist traps: a restaurant with plastic chairs, dirty tablecloths and unhelpful staff. Not to mention the food. Ok, the following day I would have chosen where to stop eating!
The following day was completely dedicated to the exploration of the town, from the beach to the main square.
Our first stop was Malagueta beach, which couldn’t be defined fantastic but nice and perfect for a little relax. Then, we took a walk along the Paseo Maritimo and explored the narrow streets of the center. A day of sightseeing, nice and quiet.

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Siena and the Crete Senesi

2011-06-04T02:13:00.000-07:00

We spent the day visiting Siena (which I had already visited back in '95, but I couldn't remember anything about) and the surrounding area, one of the most beautiful Italian landscapes I've ever seen.

Under the pretext of having parked far away, outside the walls, we had a ride to the city's most hidden alleys, we visited the Duomo and we finally came out in the crowded and touristic Piazza del Campo with its Torre del Mangia. It is always a good sight.

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Torre del Mangia in Siena.

In the afternoon, we made the same route back, passing by the Crete Senesi, which are simply spectacular. The area has a characteristic hilly landscape, almost bare of vegetation, where biancana badlands and clay gullies alternate in a suggestive way creating, at times, a lunar landscape. I let Sebastian drive (as he did for the whole trip) so I could always get out to shoot pictures in bursts.

In the evening, we decided to eat in the farm’s restaurant. Sebastian wanted to taste the Florentine… they brought us the menu and he read… Florentine € 12.50… mmmm… I got some doubts... but he didn't want to miss anything, so he also got some fries. We ate, and all was good, we drank some good wine (after all, it’s homemade), we laughed and joked, then they brought us the bill… and we didn’t laugh anymore!! Shit, the Florentine alone cost 54 euro!! Sebastian was surprised!! Explanation: on the menu it was written 12 Euro for 50 grams = 450 grams = 54 euro. After the initial discomfort, I started to laugh, and if I think about it, ahahahaha I still laugh!

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Total cost of the weekend per person:

Farm 37.50 € x 2 nights including breakfast

gasoline and highway: 60 €

lunch and dinner: approx. 40 euro per day

Volterra and the disappointment of Twilight

2011-06-03T06:15:00.000-07:00

A very short distance separated us from Volterra, where we arrived in the late morning. I had thought I could have spent all day there but in the end there weren't so many things to see. There’s the usual cathedral, the usual square, the usual medieval village… all nice things, but certainly nothing impressive. Above all, I thought I could have found Pattinson!! Or at least some remnant of his passing, but nothing – it seemed as if he had never been there.

The medieval village, however, was very pretty and built in the typical old Italian style; there're still the food stores and the cobbler! We got two buns stuffed with ham... mmmm how delicious! The midday sun was annoying, though, and we aimlessly dragged ourselves through the streets, getting a little bored, so we decided to head back to the car by passing through the park. Just the time to get in the car, and yet another thunderstorm stroke.

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2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All right reserved.
Sienese hills.

2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All right reserved.
My Tower of Pisa.

When we arrived at the Fattoria Casabianca, we got stunned: acres and acres of land (more than 650), in the territory once inhabited by the Etruscans, where the woods and the Mediterranean scrub are the natural habitat of wild boars, deer, roe deer, porcupines, and buzzards, and where the vineyards paint rolling hills.

In this huge farm there're five ancient farmhouses built in 1200 and refurbished respecting their original architectural identity. Next to the reception, there's a room available for guests, for wine tastings or meetings in a warm atmosphere. And it was right in one of these rooms, that a real tragedy would go down…

2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All right reserved.
The view from our Farmhouse.

2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All right reserved.
Our Farmhouse.

2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All right reserved.
The entrance to the farm.

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A fantastic weekend in the Siena’s hills

2011-06-02T05:52:00.000-07:00

About 6 months ago, we purchased an offer through Groupon.it, which included 2 nights (with

Breakfast included) for 2 people in a standard room in a Tuscan farm, for a total of only 75 euro.

We chose to leave on the weekend of June 2, which is a holiday in Italy and Switzerland, and making it a long week end, we had 4 beautiful days in Tuscany.

So we planned our mini tour: one day in San Giminiamo, one in Volterra, one in the area of the Siena hills or in any farm to rest, and the last day in Siena.

But let's take it slowly.

We left early and we reached our accommodation in San Gimignano in the afternoon. I had booked a B&B inside the San Gimignano walls for 60 euro per night, but the accommodation was so disappointing that I don’t even remember its name. We spent the afternoon exploring this old town that I had visited back in '95 during a school trip, but which I didn’t remember almost anything about.

Sometimes it rained, so we often stopped in our room or under some porch to rest. We also found a restaurant recommended by both the guide and the locals. Fine, we booked it for the evening!

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2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.
View from San Gimignano

2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.
View of San Gimignano

Dante
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

San Gimignano by night

2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

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Back in Bangkok

2011-03-11T05:26:00.000-08:00

The last day in Bangkok is entirely devoted to shopping. We would like to go to the floating market but it is located 80 km west of Bangkok and we don’t want to go all out to do something so much. So we go to the Chatuchak weekend market, the largest open-air market in the world. An infernal crowd, scents, odors, voices. Here you can find everything, but the market is famous for its copied clothing, shoes and household stuff. We can’t resist more than a couple of hours in this sort of hell, so we decide to return to the shopping temple par excellence: the MBK. We get the last gifts, the last personal purchases and at 7 pm, after using the underground, the skytrain and a cab, we return to the hotel. After a shower and a bad dinner, we go to bed at 10 pm. Tomorrow we have to wake up at 3.30 am: destination Milan. During our stop in Delhi, they seize Sebastiano’s lighter and pepper: the gifts for his parents. One more thing to learn: some spices are not allowed in India; as for the lighter .... well, we knew that already!

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It’s better to not lose each other in this river of people

Hellish traffic to Metro Chatuchak

The Chatuchak Market

We have to go :( demented

Total cost of the 16-day holiday all inclusive (including flight and gratuities): 1580 € for me, and not even 1500 euro for Sebastiano.

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Good Thailand to all!

Phi Phi Island: now in heaven!

2011-03-10T06:07:00.000-08:00

The ferry took about two hours for the crossing. We fell asleep and when we woke up, we found ourselves catapulted into a world that, apparently, looked more like one of hell’s circles than a paradise. Hundreds of people with a lost look on their faces; hundreds of natives who welcomed their hotel’s guests and the people looking for a new lodging: it was a total mess! But don’t be fooled, it's just the impression of an unusual initial impact; everything else is just wonderful!
We immediately found out our correspondent, who loaded all the luggage on a huge wheelbarrow and took us to the Phi Phi Casita Hotel, the place we had booked by Internet before we our departure.
Situated right behind Ao Lo Dalam beach, this elegant imitation of a fishing village consisted of small wooden bungalows arising from a muddy surface completely covered with flowers. We thought it was a great accommodation with a good quality/price ratio.
While waiting to check-in, we took advantage of the pool for a refreshing bath; then, we went for a short walk in the small but intricate village so that we could orient ourselves better and, last but not least, we enjoyed a relaxing Thai massage.

Ko Phi Phi is amazing. The sinuous beaches, the quiet coves and the stunning limestone cliffs attract travelers from all around the world. Ko Phi Phi Don belongs to the Marine National Park of Ko Phi Phi, which also includes the nearby island of Phi Phi Leh.

In the pool at Phi Phi Casita

The bungalows at Phi Phi Casit

Around the small village of the island

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The following day, we spent our time in a boat, having a ride around the whole island and stopping by the most interesting spots: we visited the fish cave, we practiced snorkeling in the Pilah lagoon and then, we are taken by a canoe to a ladder that gives access to Maya Beach, on the opposite side of the island. This is the place where the movie "The Beach", with Di Caprio, was filmed and since then the number of tourists had increased significantly. It should be a spectacular place, but the hundreds of people scar the landscape and its peace. We made a quick stop, just the time to realize that this wasn’t a great place for us, we took a few pictures and then we went back. We dove back into the sea, jumped on the boat and went back.

Shipwrecked in Maya Beach

Maya Beach
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

We continued our tour but we had to go back to the dock because a lady wasn’t feeling well, and started to vomit non-stop! We went snorkeling on the eastern side of the island. I went through a lot of difficulties, due to the strong currents, and I couldn’t go back by myself. Sebastian tried to help me but all of a sudden, a mysterious man appeared, who took me by the arm and started dragging me: he will be crowned as my hero. The only thing I could remember about him was the fact that his hands were rough even in the water. Later, I found out that he was a young Chinese man.
We stopped at Bamboo Island and Monkey Beach. It started raining and a strong storm forced us to stop in the middle of the ocean, with no visibility at all. There's a guy who was scared by thunders and kept covering his ears every time one would hit, and he became the laughing stock of the entire boat! We can’t help but laugh in his face every time he covers his ears. What a coward!
-->A cool Singha drinking on the beach under the full moon and the fire shows brought the day to its end.

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At Bamboo Island

Bamboo Island
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

Monkey Beach (no monkeys viewed)

Find the cat...and bon appetit!

Fire shows on the beach

The following morning, we took a taxi boat and we reached Hat Yao, also known as Long Beach. It can be reached by a boat tail or with a 45-minute walk through jungle trails. The beach was fantastic and much less crowded than the ones in Tonsai. It's a dream, but like all dreams, it could be interrupted by something unexpected. A sudden thunderstorm forced us to take refuge in a restaurant on the beach, where we decided to stop for lunch, hoping that in the meantime it would stop raining. Unluckily, the weather didn’t improve so we decided to return to the village, where we explored the still-unknown streets of Tonsai. We took a bath in the swimming pool while another storm was about to come, and then we went resting in our bungalow until dinner time.

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Long Beach
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

The following day, we returned to Long Beach but this time we chose to walk through the jungle. The weather was wonderful and we could finally say that we were truly in heaven! The time went by between a refreshing swim in the warm waters of the ocean and a nap under the palm tree. I got burned. Sebastian got a tan.

Long Beach
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

Taking a break on the path that leads from the village of Tonsai to Long Beach

On our last day, we decided to go to the View Point, at the top of the island. There are two ways to reach the destination, one easier but long, and the other one shorter but very rugged and entirely made of stairs. Unaware of what was awaiting us, we opted for the first one, but we had the chance to meet one of the few trucks on the island and we scrounged them a lift. Sebastian was generous and left the driver a 40 Bath tip. So in a short time, and with minimal effort, we reached the peak. And thank God we had met those kind gentlemen, or we would have surely given up before arriving at the place.
From the top of the island, the view of the twin bays, the thin strip of emerald green, turquoise and jade, the sheer karst cliffs and the peaceful Phi Phi Leh offered a perfect image for a postcard. Just the time to rest a little and take some pictures, and we were on our way back. One of my slippers broke and I had to walk bare footed all the way back.

Point View Phi Phi Island

Point View Phi Phi Island
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

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We ate at our favorite restaurant, Seba tasted yet another Thai typical dish, and I ate the usual local food: I was sick of the strong local flavor, and I ordered a shrimp salad, which came with the usual 3 actual shrimps.
We reached the dock where we took the last ferry of the day to Phuket. A minibus took us to the airport, the usual storm raged and with the usual thai delay, we arrived in Bangkok in the middle of the night. At the airport, we met the representative of the hotel we had booked online and he drove us to the hotel. It's almost 2 am when we fell asleep.

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From Pai to Chiang Mai

2011-03-06T07:13:00.000-08:00

The first stop of the day was at the temple of Na Hoo, located at about 2 km from Pai. It houses a sacred statue of Buddha, which is said to have once oozed holy water from the head. This place is frequented mostly by Thais and it also has a small market.
We learned how to pray in the Buddhist religion: we knelt down, we joined our hands in prayer by placing our fingers in the space between the eyes, and then we bowed down, resting our hands on the floor; we repeated these actions for 3 times.
We gave offerings to the monks and, in return, we were blessed and purified by the wise old monk. All the sins committed in our past life and in the current one were deleted. How I wish that was true! Maybe I should become a Buddhist too...
The offerings to the monks may include different stuff: medicines, money, food, and everything that can serve for the monks’ living and for the maintenance of the temple where they live all day, for their whole life.

Even when you sit down, never place your feet towards Buddha

The old monk who blessed us
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

The temple Hoo Na Pai
2011 © Giovanna Puccia. All rights reserved.

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From the sacred to the profane: we stopped to have a drink in what’s considered to be the best café in town, the "Pai in Love", located on a panoramic hill. The cafeteria was very busy, but it’s mostly frequented by tourists.
After a couple-of-hours-drive, and a great sense of nausea for me due to the famous 272 curves, we were back in Chiang Mai.
Our flight was in the evening, so we still had the whole afternoon. Since we still had a lot of time, we asked Tom to take us to the centre of orchids and butterflies, to the Tiger Kingdom (where, however, we categorically refused to enter), to the various local craft shops, to the Thai silk factory and the silk factories of the neighbour countries India and Pakistan, to the cotton factory, the silver factory... well, after visiting all these factories, we couldn’t take no more so we asked to be taken to the airport.
We thanked Tom, saying good-bye definitively and leaving him with a fat tip. We wouldn’t have seen him nor heard from him ever again, despite the typical "we’ll see each other on facebook" or "we’ll write each other through the email."

After yet another Thai delay (a couple of hours in total), we finally reached the bed of the filthy Twin Inn Hotel in Phuket at 2 in the morning.
Fortunately, we only had to spend a little over 6 hours in that place that had been recommended to us by that gentleman that, in an airport at 1 o’clock in the morning would have been able to persuade anyone that his hotel was the best and the closest to the dock (too bad that the following day we found out that we were at least 5 km far!).
After a never ending negotiation with a tuc tuc driver, we arrived at the port, where we embarked on the ferry to Phi Phi Island.

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I want to go to Mae Hong Son!!

2011-03-05T06:34:00.000-08:00

We wake up pretty early and we go have breakfast in a local place into the village. Seba, once he sees that only a miserable cup of tea has been served, exclaimed disconcerted with his broken English: "But...only this?" Tom smiles and reassures him, telling him to be a little bit more patient. Thai people are not as stressed as western people, take your time. From now on he will be nicknamed as Eat Machine.

DOI INANTHON NATIONAL PARK

Located in the Province of Chiang Mai, Doi Inthanon National Park also includes the highest mountain in Thailand, the Doi Inthanon. Characterized by hiking paths, waterfalls and monumental stupas built in honour to the king and the queen, the Phra Mahathat Naphamethanidon and the Naphamethanidon, to celebrate their 60th birthday, the park is one of the most appreciated destination by naturalists and bird watching lovers, in Southeastern Asia The highest slopes also hosts a big variety of species such as orchids, lichens, muss, more than 400 species of birds, barking deers, Indian zibet and giant flying squirrel.

The walk through the jungle reveals itself to be quite demanding for us as we are not very much used to physical activities. We leave 20 undeserved baths as a tip to the a guide who was simply limiting himself to smile (nevertheless we are in the country of smile!) and pointing his finger at something first and something else then. Not even a word in English, not even "attention".

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Another hour spent with the guide to then stop in a remote shop to taste a traditional tea and to buy some kind of weird foodstuffs. Seba, already used to negotiate, wants to trade even on a packet of tea, but he gets discouraged by Tom when the latter makes him notice that he's not buying a t-shirt or a silk scarf at the marketplace... A total embarrassment.

AND FINALLY MAE HONG SON

After been begging for long we finally arrive at the sleepy Mae Hong Son, better defined by Tom as "The city of nothing", should I say more? Having noticed with my own eyes that the little town, even if nice, can't offer anything special except a good restaurant where to have lunch, we decide we'd better go and visit the village of Karen Bwe tribe. The tribe, which is living in the remote mountainous area called Kayan, is better known as "the giraffe women".

The Padaung people are some of the most mysterious and fascinating ethnic groups of the whole eastern world. The name padung means "long neck" in Burmese. A very ancient tradition not yet totally abandoned, wants the ladies to wrap a long and heavy brass spiral around their neck. This special ornament is composed by two different parts. The lower one that partially covers the shoulders, while the upper part is composed by a long spiral, wrapped around the neck. Starting from when they are young, during the "full moon ceremony", girls are requested to wear brass spirals around their arms and ankles, to then been given a strong massage at their neck muscles to get them used to the first kilos of collar around the neck. This initiation rite is going to irreversibly mark the women's life forever. With the passing of the year more weights are added to the collar. In these people's tradition this jewel is a really fascinating thing to the tribe members' eyes, but it also means social and moral prestige. Without that the tradition made both the wedding and the maternity impossible and the personal achievement impracticable. Reached the right age to get married, these women's neck, that became as long as 25cm in the meanwhile, is now surrounded by a ten kilo-collar. Contrary to what it may be thought, it's not the neck to get longer, but the rib cage, that lowers under the pressure of the collar. In the past adulterous brides were asked to leave the village after removing their collar. Thinking that this tradition is purely aesthetic would be a mistake, these elements become distinctive signs having the aim of passing on information and personal achievements obtained by unanimously recognised references for what concerns the belonging to one's tribe, one's social status, differentiations between unmarried and married women and as a protection from dangers.

Tom takes us to the traditional houses of this village, we meet a kind lady who tells us something about cohabitation between Buddhists and Christians.

Craftsmanship and tourism are what the village lives on

We get back to Mae Hong Son where we learn that this sleepy place is one of the very few in the world, after the Dead Sea, Japan, in which you can find natural mud. We decide to not miss this chance, so we stop in a spa just outside the village to splatter our face with mud and purify our feet into beneficial water. Finally arrive at smiling town called Pai, where both tourists and Thai people stay for a rest and some isolation.

But do not deceive yourself, during high season Pai looks more like a weekend marketplace in Bangkok than a remote village in the province of Mae Hong Son!

Muds and beneficial water to regain our forces

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Northern Thailand: 3 days with Tom

2011-03-04T02:50:00.000-08:00

Tom, our private tourist guide for the next three days, he's very precise and exactly at 9 in front of our hotel. 30 years old, smart appearance, cheeky just to the right point, and a really nice companion. In spite of appearances he spent the first few hours only talking like a kid: about women and money, to then finally relax and fall silent.

The day will see as first plan an insipid idea to go rafting, which is really hard to call so as I would say the level of difficulty is up to 1 out of 10. Still it's enough to make my bottom.

Second stage is a 30-minute long elephant walk, throughout a river and a little wood. The bad luck gave us the hungriest mammal amongst all and we ran out of the sugar cane they gave us to feed the animal during the walk in less than 5 minutes. Our tiredness due to to the effort made to keep tight on the pachyderm, finally pays off with the view of the elephant pups.

The advantage of having a private guide is that we can stop wherever, whenever and as long as we want. In fact we often ask Tom to stop on our way, to get off and see the farmers into the rice fields, the somewhere lost Monk village, a school, a little local emporium, a nice waterfall in the middle of the jungle to enjoy some fresh bathing.

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The super dangerous rafting

Ask us if we are happy?!?

Little village in the north.

Lunch break in a local restaurant, those little bananas were great.

We leave again on our way to Doi Inanthon Nationalpark stopping by at Wat Doi Khong Moo. Unfortunately it's too late and we can't enter it, bad luck we'll try again tomorrow.

We end our day, watching a football game, particularly appreciated by the local folks. Sebastiano would like to take part to a game at least and the coach deceives him that this might be possible later on, but this time actually will never come!

Such a surprise to see the coach working as a chef at the barbecue Tom had organized for us. Another big surprise was to realize that the same coach-chef also covers many others positions within the community, one of which being a professor.

Tom and the coach-chef-professor prepare a picnic-like Thai dinner for us, using a never seen before device: it's a pot-pan with a whole in the middle where the brazier has to be placed and on the sides you have to put some water where you'll cook spaghetti and vegetables.....Anyways you can take a better look at that in the picture and try to understand what I mean because I have no idea about I might call it in Italian.

Warming-up to NOT take to the field

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We admire the terraces illuminated by the artificial lights to make the plants (flowers, vegetables and so on grow faster). We ask if this is or not a waste of energy but Tom straightaway assures us that the energy comes from the several waterfalls around us. We keep chatting with Tom for long before going back to our well-equipped tents.

During the night it seemed like the biggest thunderstorm had to come but, instead, it was only a strong wind that from time to time seemed to be close to blow our tent away.

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Chiang Mai and the Temples

2011-03-03T05:50:00.000-08:00

Just arrived at the station, we are attracted by the easy hotel reservations. A bit distrustful and intimidated we approach the booking desk and ask for information. Let's try to make the things clear: first of all we view the room then we decide whether to take it or not. There were not a lot of discussions, the room, ant the hotel in general, were more than fine, everything was clean, inexpensive (10 euros per night), provided with a swimming pool and friendly staff.

A fast shower, after two days is a must, then we go exploring the city.

Hidden among the hills located at the feet of northern Thailand mountains, Chiang Mai is a town of craftsmen, professors, university students, culture followers. Life is easier here than in Bangkok urban grid.

We have to limit our city sightseeing to one only day (unfortunately) back and forth between the sacred (temples) and the profane (shopping and massages).

Wat Phra Singh is the most visited temple of Chiang Mai and it was built in 1345. Wihan Lai Kham is the main attraction of the whole complex and still preserves the most venerated statue in town, the Buddha Phra Singh.

The Wat hosts an important school for monks. When Thai guys are around 10 their parents often send them to this school, mainly to find a remedy their child's support: the country takes charge of all costs related to education, food and accommodation for the students.

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The penny-pinchers at the night bazar.

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We then go to the Wath Phan Tao, considered as one of the most safeguarded treasure of Chiang Mai. Completely made of moulded teak panels, set one into each other, and supported by 28 giant pillars, also made of teak. Inside of it are some statues of the Buddha in golden wood.

An unnumbered quantity of photos, the amazement in front of such a beauty can't be even described. But it's already late afternoon and we are starting to be slightly tired, so that also because of a rainstorm, we take refuge in a little spa to have a feet massage. We both fall asleep. And this reminds us that when all is said and done we are on a holiday. After many practical and theoretical consultations about what tour we could buy to go exploring the northern and less scoured part of Thailand, we opt for a private guide: Tom.

We have a quick dinner in an uncontroversial and unspectacular restaurant then we head to the famous Night Bazar, anxious for spending money and dealing with the traders, at times even if on one’s last legs. We hoard rucksacks, pillows, trousers, rice-paper memo book, traditional photograph album, bracelets, t-shirts and also a Thai kimono.

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Ayutthaya, the city of dogs

2011-03-02T03:30:00.000-08:00

The third-world train to Ayutthaya leaves with a 30-minute delay from Hualamphong Station.

Ayutthaya welcomes us with the same sultriness and moistness as Bangkok; we will have to wait to be in the north to enjoy that pleasant mountain breeze.

Ayutthaya Train Station

Ayutthaya, centuries-old centre of Asian power, today offers a partial evidence of its glorious past. Until now the place has been relatively undamaged by the strong tourism flow and it boasts a special charm, but its contiguity with Bangkok makes it a compulsory stopover for tourists heading north. Ayutthaya is also the city of dogs There are many of them, often aggressive, mindless of cars, people, I've never seen so badly flea-bitten and dirty ones before.

We rent a bike just outside of the station, we have to carry it on the ferryboat with us, a wearying deal, and we had to pay for an overpriced fare, unaware of the fact that once gotten out of the vessel, we would have found several and much cheaper "rentals". Grrr what a damned nuisance! Experience is a brutal teacher.

We visit Ayutthaya riding our bike. We sweat, we laugh and we sweat again. And we have fun.

We arrive by chance to temple which is not widely visited and off the touristic routes, the Wat Suwan Dararam, a mixture of Thai architectural styles. Then in the wake of other cyclists we arrive to the more popular Wat Phra Mahathat where a Buddha's head is set into a centuries-old tangle of tree roots. Nobody knows how the head could reach that place but according to the legend it was abandoned during Ayutthaya's plundering from the Burmese and the roots then grew around it.

Buddha’s head set into a centuries-old tree

We take our bikes again, riding for a few hundred metres to get to the well-known and widely visited temple of Ayutthaya: the Wat Si Sanphet.

The three overshadowing chedis are some must see places. Inside there used to be a 16-metre tall statue of Buddha (Phra Si Sanphet), covered in 250 kilos of gold, then melted by the Burmese. It's late afternoon already and we have to return our bikes at the scheduled time so we decide to circumnavigate the island by bike to avoid to take ferry boat again. Everything went well but we are starting to be hungry. Seba is eating some chicken skewers cooked in a little stand on the road, but I reluctantly refuse to have some. But I'm starving so I decide to try some. And then some more. I learnt a lesson, never judge a book by the cover! So that on second thought, after a few minutes I ask Seba to go and get some of that simply cooked but delicious food.

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Wat Phra Mahathat

We have to wait for a full hour delay to take the overnight train for Chiang Mai and this adds up to the other several hours wandering around the train station. Come to this point we don't look like a couple of travelling lovebirds anymore but a couple of flower children jogging on the dusty roads of the city of dogs.

The overnight Thai train could be honestly compared to most European trains as for cleanliness and staff efficiency. When you get on the train, the staff makes your bed, they lay clean sheets and blankets to then take everything off in the morning. The berths are placed in one only coach and they are located one next to each other. After getting on the train, we shortly after fall asleep. 12 hours of travel pass by very quickly when you are comfortably dozing off.

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The shopping paradise in Bangkok: MBK

2011-03-01T07:50:00.000-08:00

It's a day of shopping today here in Bangkok, in one word: MBK, the temple of shopping! Seven floors of heaven, or hell if you are not a lover of this sort of stuff. At higher levels you can find restaurants, for all tastes, nationalities and pockets. Going down you have the home furnishings section, clothing, electronics (taking up a whole floor itself), shoe shops and a lot of knick-knacks. It's like being in the Land of Toys where it's so easy to get in, but so hard to find a way out, in the true sense of the word.

So we spend most of the day in a superficial but great fun way, then by a Skytrain, a clean and safe means of transport, we head to Sukumvit area where another multitude of stands, open-pit restaurants, and quite shifty massage centres...

It's hard for us to find Taxi drivers able to read occidental writing, practically impossible is to find someone who speaks English! Only the last night, arrived at the hotel we figure out they provide clients with some handy business cards with precise information and even a small map, in Thai and in English. Fortunately we haven't been swindled and some honest taxi driver still exists.

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Welcome to Bangkok, the city of angels

2011-02-28T03:06:00.000-08:00

At 9 in the morning our patience is already put on a strain: indications are not clear, Thai language and symbology don't help, air moisture and heat keep growing and patience goes down. I'm offhanded and irritable, Sebastiano looks confused and lost. But love always prevails.

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We use any means of transport, public and not: metro, skytrain, ferry, taxi. We come upon the amulet marketplace, all stands sell more or less the same knick-knack, all roads have the same odour/stench (it depends on point of view).

We arrive to our prearranged destination, Wat Phra Kaew with Royal Palace attached. Wat Phra Kaew, better known as the Temple of the Emerald, is considered the oldest Buddhist temple (Wat) in Thailand. It's located in Bangkok old town centre. It's a whole complex of religious buildings, and it's one of the four parts in which the Royal Palace complex is divided. Inside of its main temple an Emerald Buddha sacred statue is kept and theoretically it couldn't be photographed. Precisely theoretical, as I managed to take a picture from the outside. The small statue is located on a raised altar and it's hardly visible amongst the golden decorations, but always dressed up with regal clothes, a different dress for each season (hot, cold and rainy season) which is personally changed by the kind at the beginning of every season (or by the crown prince) during a solemn ceremony.
We visit the Wat in exemplary silence, we watch from every possible side and in all its nuances. We take off our shoes and put them back on continuously, you gotta enter temples barefoot or wearing socks at the most.

Inside of the Royal Palace the visitor isn't allowed to enter exception made for some anterooms, and it's a real shame because we probably missed out a big portion of Thai culture.
We rapidly pass from one Wat to another to complete our cultural tour of the Temple of the Reclined Buddha (Wat Pho). Along our way to admire the Reclined Buddha, we have a chance to make some offers to monks; 20 Bahts divided into 100 cents in order to put a coin in every single bowl. Every bowl represents a different assignment (monks, cleaners, food etc...). The whole temple is pleasingly sparkling. And it's strange to think that a kind lady who had approached us outside of the palace, had highly suggested us not to enter this temple: "Guys, monks are praying at this time, go and see Dusit Park (Ed. wonderful anyway) with my tuk tuk". Between the two travellers, one is very distrustful, fortunately.

The Temple of the Reclined Buddha in Bangkok

Seba inside of the Reclined Buddha temple.

After a tiring and burning afternoon we deserve a nice massage, which is all but relaxing! One hour under the hands, legs and feet of two capable masseuses from the official school of Massage of Bangkok, put us back on our feet. Seba is snoring, I am groaning in pain, from time to time we hear some bone creak, clear sign of a long term physical inactivity. But music and feeling make us want to relax and while closing my eyes I can still hear the chirping birdies.

We eat up a lot of more mileage, looking for a restaurant where to have dinner. Under the lucky star of our trusted guide we arrive at the well-known Racanawi Samosorn. Locals come here for the nice view on the river and for the taste but cheap fish dishes and seafood. The only con is as it's not exactly a touristic restaurant, waiters speak a little and really poor English so that it's hard for us to be understood even for a bottle of sparkling water.
Not exhausted yet from the eventful day we had, we decide not to miss out on anything by heading to Patpong, the most lively and populated area for Bangkok nightlife. Actually I'm sure that tiredness is gonna let us have some regrets later on, because of all those people, odours and noises we ran against. For those who love sex or transgressive tourism or who just wanna come to Thailand for fun, then this is the right place. In fact we didn't feel very comfortable walking on the streets where promoters literally force you to take a look (they literally put them in front of your eyes) their "pussy show" menus.
A tuk tuk ride to the hotel and a hot shower. Pollution and tiredness are the last memories of the day. And tomorrow we start again.

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